United Kingdom business would be allowed to continue to keep trading freely with South Korea after the exit of the UK form the European Union as London signed a "continuity" trade agreement with Seoul on Thursday.
The trade deal was signed by the International Trade Secretary Liz Truss on behalf of the UK while her South Korean counterpart Yoo Myung-hee signed on behalf of Seoul in London.
A preliminary deal on trade was agreed upon by the two parties in June this year. This trade deal also marks the first post Brexit deal that the UK has managed to secure in Asia.
In 2018, the total trade volume between the UK and South Korea was at £14.6bn or $17.7bn. According to reports, the trade agreement between the two countries is more or less on similar lines and clauses of the existing free trade deal between the Asian country and the European Union.
With the exit from the EU impending on the UK in October of this year, London has been seeking tp secure as many trade agreements that it can with its various trading partners.
"My priority is to make sure that British businesses are fully prepared for Brexit and ready to trade on Thursday 31 October," Truss said in a statement.
The agreement would "remove much Brexit uncertainty" from the economic partnership between the two countries, Yoo said.
Electronics, steel and the auto are the three sectors where in which South Korea is a leading manufacturer in the world and the total value of exports from the country to the UK last year was to the tune of £5.2bn.
South Korea, the fourth largest economy of Asia, primarily exports cars and ships to the UK while importing mostly crude oil, cars and whisky.
This trade agreement between the two countries would give companies such as the luxury carmaker Bentley the change to "keep trading as they do today, and they will be able to take advantage of the opportunities that Brexit offers", Truss said.
The "stability" brought by the deal was welcomed by Warren Clarke, Bentley brand manager for South Korea. "As the first luxury car brand to enter the market in 2006 Bentley Motors sees South Korea as very significant to our future business plans."
With the Brexit deadline fast approaching, there is a definitive push being made by the UK to strike trade deals and agreement with its trading partners as soon as possible. In this effort, the British government has so far managed to secure 13 trade continuity agreements with 38 countries which include the likes of Israel, Norway and Chile.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
The trade deal was signed by the International Trade Secretary Liz Truss on behalf of the UK while her South Korean counterpart Yoo Myung-hee signed on behalf of Seoul in London.
A preliminary deal on trade was agreed upon by the two parties in June this year. This trade deal also marks the first post Brexit deal that the UK has managed to secure in Asia.
In 2018, the total trade volume between the UK and South Korea was at £14.6bn or $17.7bn. According to reports, the trade agreement between the two countries is more or less on similar lines and clauses of the existing free trade deal between the Asian country and the European Union.
With the exit from the EU impending on the UK in October of this year, London has been seeking tp secure as many trade agreements that it can with its various trading partners.
"My priority is to make sure that British businesses are fully prepared for Brexit and ready to trade on Thursday 31 October," Truss said in a statement.
The agreement would "remove much Brexit uncertainty" from the economic partnership between the two countries, Yoo said.
Electronics, steel and the auto are the three sectors where in which South Korea is a leading manufacturer in the world and the total value of exports from the country to the UK last year was to the tune of £5.2bn.
South Korea, the fourth largest economy of Asia, primarily exports cars and ships to the UK while importing mostly crude oil, cars and whisky.
This trade agreement between the two countries would give companies such as the luxury carmaker Bentley the change to "keep trading as they do today, and they will be able to take advantage of the opportunities that Brexit offers", Truss said.
The "stability" brought by the deal was welcomed by Warren Clarke, Bentley brand manager for South Korea. "As the first luxury car brand to enter the market in 2006 Bentley Motors sees South Korea as very significant to our future business plans."
With the Brexit deadline fast approaching, there is a definitive push being made by the UK to strike trade deals and agreement with its trading partners as soon as possible. In this effort, the British government has so far managed to secure 13 trade continuity agreements with 38 countries which include the likes of Israel, Norway and Chile.
(Source:www.bbc.com)
